


Behind the Mask

by Skilley



Category: Yu-Gi-Oh! GX
Genre: Adoption, Alternate Universe - Twins, Child Abuse, Family Issues, Masks, Multi, Orphans
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-06-22
Updated: 2017-12-22
Packaged: 2018-11-17 11:23:09
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,451
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11274423
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Skilley/pseuds/Skilley
Summary: Jaden is hated, loved, and surrounded by people. Most see him as a happy-go-lucky optimist with a passion for dueling. Others see him as an annoying loudmouth who doesn't understand how the world works. However, very few know of the true Jaden Yuki and the past that made him who he is today. That is, until a simple phone call brings a family together again and shows the world who he really is behind the mask.





	1. Chapter 1: Beginnings

For Jaden Yuki, the world had never been much of a fair place. He hadn’t gotten any formal education, having had to teach himself with what various resources that he had found online. Everything he had found had been undeveloped, but his natural intellect had led him to sneak out to the library to learn and to find answers. He had studied the government, the social justice system, and the laws that applied to the area he lived in. Books had told him stories of how the world was supposed to protect and nurture kids, but he had always known that life wasn’t that forgiving. He had learned early on the life lessons that some people never learned even as adults, and because of that his childhood innocence had been forgotten on the road behind him. 

He had learned the value of silence; the serenity that existed when there was no yelling, no screams, no wine bottles shattering against tiles (wine got them drunk quicker than beer). He had learned how to stay unnoticed, how to hide under the radar and watch from a distance, and also how to fight back, even though his every effort was useless. But perhaps the most important lesson he had learned, was how to love. The value of another human life was priceless, but to love another’s soul was an unconditional bond that was stronger than anything, but still extremely fragile.

For Jaden, there was only one person he could truly say he loved. Some people may see it as a friendship, others as a romantic relationship. But to him, it was a dependency. His soulmate was the only thing he would ever need, despite his senseless longing for what he would never attain. The bond was unbreakable, and he had always believed that only death could separate them. When they had to separate, they traded silver lockets, a promise of reuniting whether it be in this world or somewhere far beyond. When they finally went their separate ways, they had no regrets.

 

LINEBREAK

6 Years Later

Jaden woke up to Syrus and Chumley arguing about something to do with dogs and spell cards, a glance to his clock telling him that for once he had actually woken up on time. He felt the presence of his deck beside him and a simple broadcasted thought brought a chorus of greetings from his duel spirits. He sat up and stretched his arms above his head, yawning as his joints gave several audible pops. Syrus was the first to notice him, and did a double take when he noticed he was already awake.

“Jay?” 

Jaden returned their gazes with a confused stare of his own. Why were they looking at him like that? What he failed to realize was that the only time he had woken up on time by himself was the day they had students transfer from North Academy. If that was anything to go by, something important was going to happen today. Or at least that’s what they thought.

“What’s up?” Jaden greeted as he moved out of the bed. He began getting ready for the day, changing into his iconic red jacket and strapping his deck case and belt around his waist. In the back of his mind, he could faintly sense his duel spirits meandering about what he liked to call his ‘mental plane’, a space inside his mind where he could connect to the spirit world. When he was younger, he used to accidently slip into this world when he wanted to escape. Sometimes he would spend hours in a coma-like state, dead to the world but living inside himself. He gave up on trying to explain it, but he could never confide in someone about it because it was his special place. He hadn’t even told Jesse, the only one of his friends that could make contact with the spirit world. 

Continuing a simple melody of thought in his mind, he leaned back against the wall, taking his red flip phone out and plating some intense Tetris. He looked up when Syrus made a weird clicking noise, the sound drawing his disorganized attention surprisingly quickly, and tilted his head as both Syrus and Chumley smiled weirdly. He watched Chumley smirk and nudge Syrus as he turned towards the door, and vaguely wondered if they were planning some sort of prank against him. He shrugged it off quickly, and smiled as he began skipping towards the dining hall, his friends shaking their heads at his antics.

After having breakfast with the usual amount of craziness, they went to class, starting up a conversation about the festival the academy was having this week. Instead of the usual Parents’ Week, the academy was hosting a different celebration, requested by Kaiba himself. Apparently, there was an old Egyptian holiday honoring the leader of the spirit world, a being honored under the title of the Divine Ruler. Kaiba had somehow gotten in contact with a descendant of the Divine Ruler, and he was going to be in the festival while visiting the academy. The bodyguard who acted as communication between Kaiba and the descendant had said that he had a relative at Duel Academy, but a name wasn’t given. 

As their usual group joined them, they began discussing whether or not this ceremony would be another weird event, as it seemed everything they were involved in usually was part of some sinister scheme. Chazz had already decided that something was going to happen, and Atticus was more optimistic. The others just laughed it off, it was better to let everything play out and go from there.  
They got to class on time, but only barely because they had to go chasing after Jaden yet again. Crowler was more moody than usual, which was saying something, as he began a lecture about something to do with new technology in duel disks. Jaden felt his eyes droop after only a few minutes, and he pinched himself under the table. He had gotten a letter from home saying the chancellor had contacted his house, and he wasn’t looking forward to getting a lecture next time he left during break.

He managed to hold out for around 15 minutes until his head hit his arms and he was dead to the world. As he became aware, he realized that he was in his mental plane, but he wasn’t awake. This had only happened a few times before, and it made him wary. The space shimmered around him as he moved, and he soon began to see mirrors off in the distance. The more he walked the more the mirrors surrounded him, and soon they encased him in a labyrinth of his own image.

He tried to call out telepathically, sending energy around to try and find out where everyone was. Nothing. He could sense that there was nothing anywhere around him, and yet he could see the mirrors. Hesitantly he brushed his fingers across one, only to flinch back as it shattered. Glass shattered somewhere to his left, and suddenly footsteps began to echo around the space. 

Jaden’s legs trembled, his subconscious urging him to flee but his muscles refusing to work properly. He felt something colder than ice touch his arm, and he whipped around so fast that he lost his balance. The nonexistent floor hit his arm and side hard, and he groaned. It took a minute for him to open his eyes, but he wasn’t expecting someone to be directly in front of him. He yelped and somehow fell yet again, the glowing gold eyes gazing down from above as he rocketed into nothingness. His eyes slipped closed, and suddenly he found himself being pulled out of the mental plane.

His mind was clouded until he felt a hand on his arm and multiple voices calling out to him. When he came to, he was on the floor by the isle in the classroom. His friends stood or crouched in a half circle around him, and the entire class was staring at him in shock.

“Wh..What happened?” He asked, looking around in confusion. As he shifted, he felt bruises forming on his ribs and the soreness of his arm, the same one he had fallen on when…

“You were screaming, Jay, screaming like you were being murdered. It was horrible..” Jaden looked at Syrus in shock. He had never had a nightmare before, he went to his mental plane instead of dreaming, so how did something like this happen?

He turned when Dr.Crowler coughed, and he realized once again that he was causing a scene. His legs wobbled as he tried to stand, and he fell down again before anyone had time to help him. A hand on his shoulder stopped him from trying again, and Bastion shook his head at him.

“We’re going to take him to the infirmary.” Alexis grabbed his bag from the ground, and suddenly he was in someone’s arms. He sent an annoyed look at Hassleberry, but his voice failed him as he squirmed to be put down. He was ignored, and he and his friends made their way (for the 5498643th time) to the nurse’s office.


	2. Chapter 2

Ignoring the protests of his friend in his arms, worry filled Hassleberry as they walked to the med bay. Jaden was surprisingly light as they walked, and he wondered if it had something to do with the earlier ‘episode’. They made quite a scene, but no one was in the hallway since class was still in session. 

Despite the fact that things like this happened all the time to people like them, Jaden attracting trouble was always a cause of worry, especially when it wasn’t something simple enough to be solved by duelling.

Ms.Fontaine wasn’t there when they entered the infirmary, so Hassleberry lay Jaden on the bed in the corner that was basically his by now. Almost as soon as he went down he tried to get up again, and the group held him down with synced sighs. 

“C’mon guys, let me up! I’m fine, my legs were just numb because of how I was sitting.” Jaden was once again ignored, and a few minutes later the physician walked in, looking at her clipboard.

When Ms.Fontaine noticed them, she stumbled a step and laughed awkwardly to compensate. She looked over afterwards and noticed the usual sight in the corner of the room.

“Here we go again,” she sighed. “What happened this time?”

“We were in class, and Jaden was sleeping, as usual.” Alexis sent him a pointed look, which he returned with a nervous grin.

“But then he started screaming, it was awful. We tried to wake him up and he fell out of his chair, and I think he’s strained again.” Syrus voice cracked at the beginning, and Chumley put a hand on his shoulder.

Ms. Fontaine flipped through her clipboard with a worried look, and the others stepped away so she could move the privacy screen around the cot. It worried her that she alone could keep Jaden from getting off the bed, and she threatened to sedate him so he wouldn’t move around.

Doing her usual tests, she had him hold his shirt up as she checked his breathing with her stethoscope and checked his pulse and blood pressure. She had him hold his arms out straight, noticing their trembling, and asked him to stand up.

She moved back to let him swing his legs over the edge, and Jaden took a short breath before pushing himself up. He managed to get on his feet, but the moment he tried to straighten he yelped and his legs collapsed. Ms. Fontaine was able to catch him in time, and she noticed how easy it was to support him. 

Settling back down on the bed, he was oddly quiet as she pulled the screen back and let his friends crowd around once again.

She moved to her desk and opened the drawer, noting Jaden’s lack of response despite his usual peppiness. Fishing around the abyss and reminding herself to organize later, she pulled out two small containers. Leaving the boys to do their thing, she motioned for Alexis to join her. 

She gave the girl one of the containers, filled with a dark liquid. It tinged purple when she held it to the light, and a mini spoon was attached to the side.

“I’m going to trust you with this, seeing as some of the boys can be a bit rowdy.” She motioned to the bottle.

“This should help him sleep, and make sure he actually naps so he gets his energy back.”

Alexis nodded, her face stern but thoughtful, and she slipped it into the pocket of her blazer.

They walked over to the bed where she gave the other container to Jaden, letting him shake it and look at the small pills inside. He tried to open it, but the childproof lid proved to be too much of a challenge.

“Jaden.” She almost laughed at his gaze jerked to her, eyes round like her old dog when he was a young puppy, wide and innocent.

“I need you to take these with food, and you need to eat five small meals a day to help your energy. I’ll write you a note to excuse you from participating in class tomorrow, but you can’t miss anymore or the school board will file a complaint.”

He nodded, and Chazz muttered a sassy comment off to the side about how Jaden never participated in class anyway.

She went the side room, knowing Jaden probably wouldn’t appreciate being carried for a while. The second she found what she needed the main door burst open. 

“This is plum crazy!”

A blur sped past and buried itself on the bed, and Ms. Fontaine could only blink in shock. She made eye contact with an exasperated Jim, and then her nurse instinct kicked in. 

She marched over and grabbed Jesse by the ear, pulling him off a laughing but out of breath Jaden, and deposited him off to the side. Hands on her hips, she gave him her nurse look, waiting until he scratched the back of his neck and looked away before sighing and shaking her head at him.

She went back to the side room, letting the others fill the newcomers in before grabbing and rolling out a wheelchair. When her patient noticed it, the playful defiance was back again.

“Come on, I’ll rest and stuff but I don’t need a set of wheels! I have legs for a reason.”

“Would you rather make one of your friends carry you everywhere?” 

Chumley shuddered, remembering the last time Jaden was bedridden, and eventually Jaden relented. To keep the hyperactive boy satisfied, Ms. Fontaine let Jesse be the one to cart Jaden around, hoping that their hyperactiveness would mirror and cancel each other out.

She let them leave begrudgingly, and hoped she hadn’t put too much trust in them.

Jaden was wheeled out into the hallway, his hands tight on the familiar feeling of wheelchair padding, and the group headed back to the Slifer dorm since they had all gotten passes. The next day was the start of the festival, and most of their families (Sans Chazz and Chumley) were arriving with the other visitors in the morning. 

They would have one more day of classes, and then they would enjoy the ceremonies that the Academy was hosting in the main campus auditorium. There was also supposed to be an ariel show, with rumours that Kaiba was bringing his iconic Blue Eyes White Dragon jets, which had become a source of comedy among the students.

LINEBREAK

The next morning the group raced out to the docks, joining the maze of other students, and more than once Jesse almost overturned the wheelchair and threw Jaden into the water. They managed to avoid incident, luckily, and soon the boats started unloading. 

The first to find them was a young looking couple. The man was tall with sandy blonde hair and bright green eyes. The woman was also tall, with short brown hair and deep brown eyes. They smiled, and Alexis ran over to greet them. After a brief chat and many hugs, she introduced them to the group, noticing the way their eyes strayed to the wheelchair though they didn’t comment.

Zane came up behind them with a man who looked like an older version of him, and Syrus greeted them both with slight timidity. He introduced his father to their congregation, but he didn’t make any conversation, just staring at each of them in turn. Mr. Truesdale left shortly after, and the brothers exchanged looks as he went to ‘greet’ the school staff.

They found the parents of Hassleberry and Jim having a boisterous conversation by the shore, making both sons share embarrassed glances. The four finished their conversation and went around giving each a hug or handshake, telling them how their kids had told them so many stories about their adventures. 

Soon the parents had made a group off to the side, and they waited for Jaden’s family. After a short while of tapping his fingers, Jaden looked up at the others, confused.

“Why are we still here? We’re supposed to move everyone to the guests dorms.”

“Whaddya mean Jay? No one’s here for you yet.” Jesse looked around again to see if someone had appeared when he wasn’t paying attention.

“Oh,” Jaden moved his hands down to his lap and looked down, swallowing. “Um, I don’t have anyone who’s coming for me. I don’t really have any family…”

They all gasped, and Jaden fidgeted in his seat, knowing that he probably should’ve cushioned his words a bit more. There was movement, and a second later they were all crowded around his chair suffocating him in a hug. He froze up, but then laughed in the embrace, reassuring their apologies with his natural charisma.

Eventually they all let go, and despite what this information revealed about their friends they carried onward. The group of parents seemed to have keen maternal/paternal instincts, and didn’t mention anything, instead letting their kids show them around.

After a tour, the staff corralled everyone off to the guest dorms, and the students dispersed to go to class. When the initial excitement wore off, more and more people began staring at the group as they moved across the campus.

Hassleberry and Jim moved to block their gazes, being the more tall and built part of their friend group, and lead the way up until their classes split. Unfortunately, because of the scandal with Yubel and the awry professor, Jim and Jesse went to a seperate class after the curriculum reformation.

They still managed to hang out at every given moment, however, and the shenanigans still occurred despite the trepidation of their instructors. It seemed like everything always happened to them, and by consequence the school, and Duel Academy was still standing, a worthy accomplishment.

With the new arrangements was a new seating chart, and Jaden’s seat was luckily at the end by the isle. The wheelchair wouldn’t go down the stairs, and literally everyone in the classroom watch as Chumley and Chazz dragged Jaden and the chair down to where they sat. Syrus followed them while giving a hard glare to everyone in the room, but it was not very effective.

Their instructor for the day wasn’t ~~Mr.~~ Dr. Crowler, so they were able to get by without too much attention, though the man did ask if Jaden was well enough to be in class.

By the end of the day they were all tired but ready for the festivities approaching, and the second they got in the dorm Syrus, Chumley, and Jaden (with some assistance) all collapsed down into their mattresses.

After dinner they had discussed the following few days, and Jaden had accepted the others’ offer to have fun as one big group instead of separating, so that instead everyone was included. During the meal his friends had forced him to take some of the pills, and Alexis had given him a weird tinged purple drink to wash it down.

Whatever it was, it helped with the insomnia he had been feeling as of late, and the pills knocked him out before he had time to try and revisit his mental plane, something he had been hesitant to do since the incident. 

As he finally drifted, he could’ve sworn he felt the bed sink softly with another person’s warmth and a hand on his brow. But by then, he was already gone to a dreamless night.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please excuse my inability to update on a normal schedule, my day to day life is always a bit hectic :P
> 
> Here, have a gift: http://bit.ly/2BlozPx
> 
> As always, comments are appreciated and thoughts/opinions are welcome :]


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